Kelley Parker: After coronavirus lockdown – This mom wants leaders to step up with a plan to keep us safe, open

close

Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for June 22

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

As a suburban woman and mother of five children, I am furious – and I’m not alone. Most of the women I speak with regularly agree with me but are afraid to share their opinions because they don’t align with the politically correct views of the mainstream media or the woke mobs. Not me. I’ve had enough.

We need to stand up and present our positions boldly and without fear.

Most of us are taught from an early age to obey and respect authority. So, when the coronavirus first surfaced, it was not surprising to me that women obeyed in good faith when leaders in government and public health asked us to stay home. We wanted to do the right thing by keeping our communities, our aging parents and our children safe.

LIZ PEEK: INTOLERANCE THREATENS US – HERE'S WHO TO BLAME FOR CANCEL CULTURE'

With anxious but faithful hearts, we worked from home, made masks and donated to local food banks. We did this assuming it was a two-week mandate; we started homeschooling our children as best we could, all while keeping our houses clean and families fed.

But frustration began to grow when I was unable to buy enough meat at the grocery store to feed my family of seven because of “meat rationing.” When I asked to buy more, I was told “sorry ma’am” and had to make another trip, potentially exposing myself again to the virus a few days later.

Worse, we had to grieve with our children the loss of spring sports, dance recitals, high school graduations, summer camps, vacations and trips planned to see family.

Many of us are unsure what to expect in the coming months, especially when it comes to the next school year. It seems unlikely that many schools will reopen fully in the fall, and if they do it will be with suffocating restrictions for our children such as wearing masks, staying off the playgrounds and having to follow social-distancing rules that even adults can’t comply with.

I would love to see our political and community leaders come out with strong support for the reopening of schools and extracurricular activities and outline sensible policies that take into account the smallest among us.

Sadly, before we had the coronavirus and lockdowns behind us, so many communities were subjected to violence after the death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police.

As our society moves forward, I need to know there’s a plan, one made by rational humans, to get things back to normal.

I am appalled by what happened to George Floyd and the clear police brutality evidenced on the video detailing his death. However, what has come in the aftermath – the looting, rioting, theft, arson, murder and complete chaos in the streets – has made me say, “Enough!” Change is clearly needed, but cooler heads need to prevail. The loudest voices in the room cannot be the most radical.

I am doing my best to raise my children to be upstanding citizens of their future communities. I strive to teach them to love their neighbor and be kind to all they meet regardless of race, color and creed. I want them to do better than those that have gone before us. But in the midst of helping them adapt to crushing restrictions and seismic life changes because of the coronavirus lockdown, they are witnessing cities under siege and ongoing threats of violence.

We must end police brutality and implement the policies that will make that happen. But defunding the police is not the answer.

I want – no, NEED – the leaders of our beloved nation to stand firm in their conservative values: To restore law and order. To be champions for our men and women in police uniforms. To fully fund our police departments. To protect our communities. To open up the economy fully and completely, including our schools and churches.

We cannot in good conscience send our kids to school if they will not be protected or if the police force is too small to react if, for example, a school shooter targets our school. As a mom, I want to know my children will be protected by trained professionals. The call to “defund the police” is insanity. I want to see our leaders take a hard stance against this nonsense.

As our society moves forward, I need to know there’s a plan, one made by rational humans, to get things back to normal. It may seem that the Centers for Disease Control wants us all to stay six feet apart while wearing full protective gear until all threat of any disease is eradicated, but that’s not realistic. I want our elected leaders to chart a safe, reasonable course.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR OPINION NEWSLETTER

Every day, moms do the tedious work to ensure our children are safe and healthy; we know real change begins in our own homes.

But our leaders must do their part too. It’s time for them to fight for us and make our country a place where we can safely prosper, raise our families and lead productive lives as American citizens without fear and suffocating restrictions.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP